Method and apparatus for accessing media content via metadata

ABSTRACT

A method of using an entertainment system to access content stored on a digital content storage device having one or more records containing metadata associated with the content on the storage device. The method includes downloading from the storage device to an entertainment system at least some of the metadata; storing the downloaded metadata in a database accessible to the entertainment system; and accessing content on the storage device from entertainment system using at least a portion of the downloaded metadata in the database.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §120 of U.S.application Ser. No. 11/260,699, entitled “Entertainment System WithBandless Tuning, Remote Control Alarm and Universal Docking,” filed onOct. 27, 2005, which is herein incorporated by reference in itsentirety.

This application hereby incorporates by reference the following U.S.Provisional Applications: Ser. Nos. 60/623,006 and 60/622,924, bothfiled on Oct. 27, 2004, and 60/637,669, filed Dec. 20, 2004, all titled“APPARATUS FOR AUDIO PLAYBACK AND METHODS OF USING SAME” and Ser. No.60/708,673, filed Aug. 16, 2005 and titled “DUAL-MODE WIRED/WIRELESSREMOTE CONTROL AND ENTERTAINMENT UNIT USING SAME.”

FIELD OF INVENTION

This invention relates to the field of electronic entertainment systemsand, in particular, to a system which includes a base (table) audiounit, a dual-mode control unit, a fail-safe alarm and a universaldocking mechanism for portable music/media players, network and wirelessreceivers and other (detachable) devices.

BACKGROUND

Electronic entertainment systems are not, as a category, new. Radios,for example, have delivered audio content for more than 75 years.Phonographs have existed for more than 100 years. They have evolved intonumerous other pertinent devices, including removable media tape and CDplayers (both stationary and portable), satellite broadcast receiversand various kinds of portable fixed-media players such as MP3 players.The latter include, for example, various models of the iPod brand MP3players from Apple Computer, Inc. of Cupertino, Calif., the Zen andother players from Creative Technology, Ltd. of Singapore, and so forth.

Some manufacturers have provided base units into which certain specificportable MP3 players of a single manufacturer, such as Apple Computer'siPod players, may be docked to play music recorded on the MP3 player viaamplifiers and speakers external to the player. In general, such units,however, have a limited range of players they can accept as input. Thisis somewhat problematic in that when a customer purchases such aproduct, the customer has little assurance that it will not be madeobsolete in relatively short order by the introduction to the market ofa new MP3 player or other device. Accordingly, a need exists for anentertainment platform which is not so readily obsolesced. To the extentthat attempts have been made to provide a more flexible platform that isuseful with multiple and future players, typically a standard plug isprovided to plug into any analog audio output jack of the player; andthere is only limited external control of the player (e.g., forward,back and play).

Efforts also have been made to marry MP3 players with table clockradios. The result is basically a conventional clock radio that can alsoplay songs from the MP3 player via loudspeakers contained in the clockradio. The table clock radio is a ubiquitous household appliance whosefunctionality has changed little in many decades. Consequently,virtually all commercial clock radios are subject to numerouslimitations which lead to a variety of user frustrations not alleviatedby the addition of a portable music player as a music source. Forexample, a clock radio normally has a single volume control whichcontrols the volume of sound when the radio is turned on normally, aswell as when the alarm function turns on the radio. Consequently, if onetemporarily turns down the volume control while the radio is playingand, not realizing that situation, activates the alarm, then when thealarm turns on, it turns on a radio whose volume has been muted. Thus,the user may not be awakened by the alarm. Conventional alarm clockshave a variety of other limitations and it has become virtuallyingrained in the consuming public to expect them.

Radio tuners, particularly user interfaces of such tuners, have alsochanged very little in years. Yet new broadcast modes, such as satelliteradio, HD radio and the like present challenges for the integration withAM and FM tuning bands. For both home entertainment systems andautomobile entertainment systems, new interfaces are needed to simplifytuning.

Thus, in general, improved user interface for home and autoentertainment systems are needed.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

Various efforts to integrate bits and pieces of the audio landscape intoa cohesive and affordable system have been met with problems such as,for example, incompatibility of various devices, proprietaryfrequencies, inelegant user integration, or even high price. The systempresented herein provides for more convenient and easier to use hostingfor the large number of existing audio products, adaptability to futureproducts, and a better user experience for the consumer. There is showna system for in-home or in-office use, and some aspects for automobileuse, which can accommodate numerous playback or broadcast sources, andprovides extensive and advanced alarm clock functionality along withsimplified radio station tuning. Some aspects or features may be usefulfor portable devices, as well, while others likely will not.

Entertainment systems as presented herein address the above-expressedneeds and others that will become apparent below. An integratedcollection of components, features and techniques together provideimproved delivery of (typically, audio) content and improved, simplifiedcontrol over the delivery and selection of that content, and relatedfunctionality. There are various aspects to the system, and relatedmethods as discussed below.

According to a first aspect, an entertainment system is shown,comprising a base unit having electronics including a transceiver forinteracting, at least at times, with a control unit via a communicationslink that is preferably an RF link, and a control unit for controllingthe base unit, the control unit being dockable with the base unit toestablish direct electrical connection therebetween and including atransceiver for interacting with the control unit via said RF link whenundocked from the base unit. The control unit is thus operable in twomodes and presents substantially the same user experience in both modes.The control unit may be considered a separate aspect of the invention orsystem.

The base unit may contain a radio tuner, preferably with bandless tuningcapability (see below), and may be designed to receive into a universaldocking arrangement a digitally controllable auxiliary audio source suchas a portable MP3 player or a variety of other devices, such assatellite receivers, wireless networking cards, and so forth. In oneembodiment, the device includes a network card for integrating thedevice into a computer network through an Ethernet connection, orthrough WiFi, or PowerLine networks. The radio tuner and/or auxiliaryaudio source may supply a stream of information from a broadcaster orother medium, about the broadcaster and/or program content, orotherwise, for example; and the base unit may include processingcapability to decode, store, recall, and/or display some or all of thatinformation, or otherwise to process the information (for example, tosort it or analyze it), such as to facilitate content selection. Thebase unit may further provide alarm clock functionality with numerousfeatures including a “fail-safe' volume control system and fail-safealarm time setting capability.

The device is adapted to obtain streaming audio broadcasts and othernetworked or Internet based broadcast sources. An example of a streamingaudio service compatible with the device of at least some embodiments ofthe present invention includes Rhapsody by Real Systems. Rhapsody is astreaming service that permits a user to have a remote personal musiclibrary. Likewise, the device can play music and content from personaldownloaded music libraries, particularly digital libraries such asNapster and iTunes. In one aspect, the invention provides a device forreceiving, storing and playing back content from a personal musiclibrary stored on a peripheral device.

The device is a “pull” or “on-demand” system, which permits the user toselect the audio content from a location remote from the device. Thiscontrasts with “push” systems such as AirTunes, that require a user tocontrol programming from a central computer for supply to remoteplayers. In other aspects, the device provides for a central unit inwireless communication with one or more remote player units. Thus a usercan play music in one or more locations in their house, and can controlplayback from multiple locations, thereby providing whole house audio,without having to run speaker or control wires through walls and floors.

In one aspect, the invention provides a device for receiving, storingand playing back broadcast content. The device provides for numerousfeatures that improve the user experience, and is compatible with avariety of broadcast signals, including those provided on FM, AM,satellite shortwave bands, high definition (HD) and weather radio bands.The device is also compatible with proprietary broadcast formatsrequiring a decoder, such as those used in satellite radio. In thisembodiment, the device is configured with power and signal routingadaptors for XM, Sirius and other satellite radio decoder and controlunits. The device includes a receiver, optionally a decoder with astorage medium coupled to the decoder, one or more user inputs and asystem controller coupled to the user input, an amplifier and optionallya preamplifier, a display screen, and one or more speakers or audiooutput devices. In one embodiment, the receiver receives a signal, suchas a digitally encoded bit stream over-the-air on a plurality ofcommunication resources, wherein each of the plurality of communicationresources contains content and associated index information. The decoderselectively decodes a selected plurality of communication resources andthe user input selects the selected plurality of communication resourcesbased on the associated index information and selects a portion of thecontent contained in selected plurality of communication resources to beretrieved. The storage medium stores the content and associated indexinformation contained in the selected plurality of communicationresources and the system controller stores and retrieves content to andfrom the storage medium based on input received at the user input. Inanother aspect of the present invention, a method of receiving andstoring audio radio signals, comprises the steps of receiving a signal,such as a digitally encoded bit stream over-the-air on a plurality ofcommunication resources, wherein each of the plurality of communicationresources contains content and associated index information andselectively decoding a selected plurality of communication resources.The method then enables the selection of the selected plurality ofcommunication resources using a user input and the associated indexinformation and stores the content and associated index informationcontained in the selected plurality of communication resources in amemory device. In a third aspect of the present invention, a system fortransmitting, receiving, storing and playing back digital audio radiosignals comprises an encoder, a transmitter, a receiver, a decoder, auser input, a storage medium coupled to the decoder, and a systemcontroller coupled to the user input. The encoder encodes one or morecontent sources and associated index information in an encoded bitstream and the transmitter transmits over-the-air the content sources.The receiver receives the encoded bit stream over-the-air and thedecoder selectively decodes the transmitted signal. The user inputselects a portion of the content contained in selected communicationresources to be retrieved. The storage medium stores the content andassociated index information, and the system controller stores andretrieves content to and from the storage medium based on input receivedat the user input interface. In preferred embodiments, the device iscompatible with all types of modular decoder/player satellite radiocomponents, e.g., those from XM and Sirius.

According to a second aspect, there is provided by the control unit aradio tuning interface which presents to a user a bandless tuningexperience even when the radio receiver in the base unit covers multiplebands of the radio spectrum. Such a radio tuning interface for a radioreceiver having apparatus for receiving signals broadcast on a firstband and signals broadcast on a second band, may provide the user only asingle frequency selection knob for selecting broadcast frequencies onboth bands by presenting the bands as successive rotationally adjacentpositions of the knob. This also enables cross-band “seeking” and“scanning” for a station or content of interest. The interface mayinclude a counter or encoder for tracking rotational position of theknob and a processor for generating signals in response to saidrotational position, the signals mapping the position to a band and afrequency within the band, a display connected and arranged to displaysaid band and frequency, and a tuner interface supplying said band andfrequency signals to a tuner in the base unit. Optionally, the tuner mayinclude so-called one or more station “preset” buttons, which may beused to store, and quickly recall with a simple button press, a desiredstation(s). If desired, the preset functionality may be combined withinformation captured from a signal source, such as a radio station, suchas the station's call letters. A “soft” button may be provided (e.g., ona touch screen or other input device) and the button may be labeled withthe station's call letters. Or a button label area may be provided onscreen (e.g., for hardware buttons) and the call letters or stationfrequency may be displayed there, even if the area is nottouch-responsive. Optionally, a sorting algorithm may be used to sortsuch information and to re-assign stations to preset buttons; forexample, to sort stations by music type, if that data is made available.Systems such as RDS supply a number of types of information anddifferent users may wish to use that information in different ways.Preferably, therefore, a mechanism (e.g., software running on aprocessor in either the control unit or the base unit) is provided toplace the unit into a user-programmable mode wherein the user may,through menu picks and other input conveniences, select whichinformation to use and how to use it. Innumerable arrangements arepossible by virtue of including a programmable processor element andmemory in the control unit and/or the base unit.

According to yet another aspect, there is provided an adapter assemblysubstantially as shown and described, for receiving audio signalsources, satellite receivers, wireless LAN interfaces and other deviceswhich have different connectors and form factors.

According to a still further aspect, the system may include alarm clockoperation and, indeed, by virtue of the processing capability provided,numerous advanced alarm clock features may be incorporated at virtuallyno incremental cost. Such alarm clock features are discussed below. Someaspects of such alarm clock operation interrelate to another aspect ofthe invention, whereby separate audio channels with separate volumecontrols are provided, typically at the input to the audio amplifier,for each signal source or function, so that, for example, the volume ofthe radio in the alarm clock mode is independently controlled from theregular playing volume of the radio.

Yet another aspect of the system is the architecture of providing a baseunit and a remote unit which communicate wirelessly, preferably by RF(though an optical—e.g., infrared—link is also an alternative), and eachhaving a processor, whereby great flexibility and capability areprovided, as outlined above and below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are not intended to be drawn to scale. In thedrawings, each identical or nearly identical component that isillustrated in various figures is represented by a like numeral. Forpurposes of clarity, not every component may be labeled in everydrawing. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a high-level block diagram of an example of a system as taughtherein;

FIG. 2A is a pictorial view of an example of a remote unit for a systemas taught herein;

FIG. 2B is a pictorial view of a system as taught herein with thedetachable remote unit of FIG. 2A docked with an example of a base unit,

FIG. 3 is another high-level block diagram further illustrating thearchitecture of the components of the remote unit and base unit in anexemplary embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic illustration of the signal flow between theremote unit and base unit when the remote unit is undocked;

FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic illustration of the signal flow between theremote unit and base unit when the remote unit is docked;

FIG. 6 is a front view of an example of an entertainment unit as taughtherein, with a docked remote control unit and a simulated display;

FIG. 7 is another front view of the unit of FIG. 6, showing a top panelopen to receive an ASM;

FIG. 8 is still another front view of the unit of FIGS. 6 and 7, with anAuxiliary Source Module (ASM) docked;

FIG. 9 is an isometric top view of the unit of FIGS. 6-8, showing anexample of an interface module for an ASM;

FIG. 10 is a diagrammatic, exploded view of a portion of the interfacemodule of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a top view of the example entertainment unit showing aninterface module in place with the cover open and no ASM docked;

FIG. 12 is a block diagram of audio routing in the base unit to effectsome optional “fail-safe” alarm features;

FIG. 13 is a front view of a base unit of an example system, with anApple Computer iPod player installed as an ASM and the wireless controlunit undocked to reveal a snooze alarm kill switch and (at the bottom)contacts for interfacing directly to the control unit when it is docked;

FIGS. 14 and 15 are close-up views of a display on an example of acontrol unit, illustrating on-screen labeling of soft buttons (shownbelow the screen on the control unit); and

FIG. 16 is an isometric view of an example of a system as discussedherein, with a docked control unit (or permanently attached controlunit) and another ASM, perhaps a satellite receiver, docked on top.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

This invention is not limited in its application to the details ofconstruction and the arrangement of components set forth in thefollowing description of or illustrated in the drawings. The inventionis capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of beingcarried out in various ways. Also, the phraseology and terminology usedherein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded aslimiting. As used herein, a “processor” can be implemented in anyconvenient way. It may, for example, be a programmable microprocessor ormicrocontroller, or it may be an application-specific integrated circuit(ASIC) or it may be hard-wired circuitry, or a neural network, or a gatearray or FPGA (field-programmable gate array), or any other form ofinformation processing device. A microprocessor is discussed as apractical example, not to be limiting. The use of “including,”“comprising,” or “having,” “containing,” “involving,” and variationsthereof herein, is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter andequivalents thereof, as well as additional items.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 (i.e., FIGS. 2A and 2B), an entertainmentsystem 100 of the type to be discussed herein has a number ofsub-assemblies. These include at least a base or table unit 102 and acontrol sub-assembly 104. The base unit 102 further includes an audioamplifier 106, one or more (preferably at least two) loudspeakers (orspeakers) 108, and housing 112. (As illustrated, the speakers 108 arewithin housing 112, but this is not required.) It may also include atuner 114 and/or audio signal source interface sub-assembly 116connectable to one or more detachable devices 118 (also called AuxiliarySource Modules, or ASMs). The control sub-assembly includes a two-mode,detachable control unit 104A and an interface therefor, 104B, in thebase unit. The detachable device 118 is preferably a digitallycontrolled device that supplies an audio signal (in any acceptableformat, analog or digital), via the interface sub-assembly 116, to theaudio amplifier 106. For example, the audio signal source in an ASM maybe an MP3 player, a device such as an iPod digital player from AppleComputer, Inc. of Cupertino, Calif., a wireless network adapter, asatellite radio receiver, or any other device that can be plugged intointerface sub-assembly 116 at connector assembly 122. When the ASM isplugged into the interface sub-assembly, it supplies audio signals tothe audio amplifier sub-assembly under control of the controlsub-assembly. When the audio signal source (i.e., ASM) supplies an audiosignal in a digital format, the audio signal is first routed through adecoder (e.g., in a codec) before the analog decoder output is routed tothe audio amplifier. The decoder may be a dedicated module or it may beimplemented by software executing on a processor 115 which has multiplefunctions. The decoder must be appropriate to the signal format, ofcourse, and appropriate decoders will be familiar to software developersand other engineers.

When a network adapter is used (wired or wireless), the system maycontrol a remote device (personal computer, etc.) which can then act asa server of music and other files to the base unit (e.g., from AppleComputer's iTunes service or the like) or as a streaming audio source.With appropriate decoder software executing on processor 115 or anotherprocessor (not shown), the device can play songs provided in variousmusic formats, such as WAV, MP3, WMA, and AAC, among others. The systemmay provide for receiving, storing and playing back broadcast content.

The detachable control unit 104A preferably comprises a display device132, one or more input devices 134A-134N, a wireless transceiver 136 anda docking (wired) interface port 138, and batteries for power (notshown), in a housing or stand 140 designed to mate with the base unit102. Preferably, when mated, the control unit 104A and base unit 102appear to be an integrated device. Optionally, when detached from thebase unit, the control unit may be supported on a cradle of convenientdesign, such as an angled piece of plastic or other material, thearrangement and style of the cradle being a matter of design choice.

The control unit 104A operates in two modes. In a first, docked mode,the control unit is electrically connected to the audio amplifier andsignal source electronics sub-assembly via a set of connectors orterminals 142A, 142B and its wireless transceiver is disabled. This“wired” connection conserves battery power (power for the control unitbeing supplied by the base unit), in a typical implementation it alsoallows the battery power supply to be recharged from the base unit,simplifies the wireless connection as it is engaged only when thewireless mode is used, and provides the reliability of a directelectrical connection. In a second, undocked mode, the control unit isseparated from the base unit and the electrical connection at connectors142A, 142B is broken. The control unit switches (preferablyautomatically, with appropriate circuitry detecting the undocking) tobattery power and intercommunicating wireless transceivers in thecontrol unit and base unit are enabled.

Preferably, the wireless transceivers provide and receive signalscompliant (at least at a physical level) with an industry standard, suchas the ZigBee standard. This allows use of inexpensive, mass-producedtransceivers. As for the logical levels of the signaling protocol,standardized or proprietary specifications can be employed. Oneadvantage of using a proprietary signaling protocol is that otherdevices would not be able to control the base unit (e.g., remotecontrols for other systems, or stray signals of other systems).Optionally, a signaling protocol may be used which allows multiplecontrol units to interact with, and control, the base unit. That way,the user may deploy control units in different rooms in a house or indifferent places in the same room, for example.

The control unit preferably includes a display, such as a liquid crystal(LCD) screen, for showing the user textual and/or graphical informationsuch as is typically displayed on a home entertainment device. Forexample, such information may include a selected input device (e.g.,built-in radio tuner, iPod portable music device, network card, etc.),volume, song and/or station being listened to (if operating in a radiomode), control functions, etc. Preferably, the display is capable ofpresenting standard bitmapped graphics to the user, but displays usingother formats are certainly acceptable; bitmapped graphics simplyprovide the maximum display flexibility at the lowest cost. Thecombination of a processor-operated bitmapped display screen, togetherwith a knob and buttons that can be pressed to move a cursor andindicate a selection, provides for a menu-driven user interfaceestablished by software executing on the processor. The details of theinterface selections are a matter of design choice. The input source andother user information preferably is displayed on the display screen.Desirably, when the user has selected the tuner as the audio signalsource, the system receives and displays RDS (Radio Data Service)broadcast information in a conventional way, which allows a user toreceive information relating to the song being played, such as the songtitle and recording artist. Using conventional techniques, the displayscreen can be programmed to deliver content in multiple selectablelanguages. In other embodiments, display content may be replaced by orcomplemented by voice prompts during user-defined operations. The use ofvoice prompts permits operation by vision-impaired individuals.

The display outputs data obtained locally in the control unit and/orobtained from the base unit via the interface. In addition, the controlunit includes input devices such as one or more switches and one or moreknobs. One of the knobs, 134A, preferably is a tuning knob, as arotatable knob appears to be widely adopted for radio station selectionand other inputs of home entertainment devices. A knob, however,certainly is not a requirement. Any suitable input device may besubstituted, such as switches for directing upward and downwardfrequency change.

Tuning

Preferably, the tuner (the details of which are not relevant, as anyconventional turner can be adapted for use in this system) is capable ofreceiving broadcast signals from different radio bands, such as the AMband, the FM band, other radio sources such as satellite broadcast bands(which may be subscription services), or direct audio broadcast orinternet broadcast or other such services. Each of those bands occupiesa different segment of the radio frequency spectrum or the equivalent,addressable “space.” Each radio band typically is allocated to abroadcast service which, by regulation, employs a specific type ofmodulation scheme for encoding information that is transmitted, forexample, in the AM band, amplitude modulation is used; while in the FMband, frequency modulation is used (Likewise, the other services usedistinct modulation or encoding schemes.) In a typical AM/FM radio, theprocessing of a received AM signal is thus usually performed bycircuitry which is almost completely different from that used forprocessing a received FM signal. The outputs of the AM section and theFM section are, however, supplied to an audio amplifier and speakersshared by those two sections. Typically, a user operates a bandselection switch to choose which of the two sections is energized andconnected to the audio amplifier, etc. Appropriate mechanics, logic andcircuitry may switch the source of some of the screen information toshow appropriate frequency and other information, and connect the inputcontrols to control the frequency setting of the selected section andsometimes to adjust functions such as sensitivity or filtering.

At one time, the program content of AM and FM stations were markedlydifferent. FM broadcasts are better suited to the delivery of music andtended more to provide music content. AM broadcasts were largely usedfor talk shows, news reports, sports and the like, with less music.Programming in the two bands is now far less distinct than it wasdecades ago and users often make less distinction between the two bandsthan was true years ago. Talk shows, sporting events, etc. arefrequently broadcast on the FM band, for example. Yet users still haveto consciously switch between bands on their AM/FM and other multi-bandradios.

Turning to FIG. 3, there is shown in block diagram form an arrangementwe call “bandless” tuning, whereby no AM/FM switch is presented to theuser and the user does not have to activate a switch to change bands.Instead, one simply tunes from the end of one band directly into thebeginning of another band, as though they were contiguous in frequency.The illusion is given the user of single band operation. The bands canbe arranged in a loop, so that the top end of the last band in sequencewraps to the bottom end of the first band. If there are three or morebands, they may be arranged in any desired sequence. To effect thisoperation, various implementations are possible. The implementationshown in FIG. 3 is presented by way of illustration and example only,not to illustrate specific circuitry. There, an all-digital controlsystem is depicted for selecting the active tuning section andconnecting it appropriately. A tuning knob 134A provides UP and DOWN(DN) counter control signals (in response to clockwise andcounterclockwise rotation, respectively) to associated circular (modulo)counter electronics 302, the design of which is well known toelectronics engineers. The counter 302 supplies a digital output signalon line 304. The digital signal on line 304 represents a count valuefrom a counter whose count increments, for example, as the tuning knobis rotated clockwise, and whose count decrements as the tuning knob isrotated counterclockwise. The COUNT signal on line 304 may represent anumber from zero through a maximum value determined by the designer toresolve at least a certain predetermined number of radio station channelassignments so that there is a 1:1 mapping of count values and channels(frequencies). Through whichever interface is employed at the time(wired or wireless), a corresponding CHANNEL SELECT signal is conveyedon data line(s) 306 to a processor 115. The processor maps the CHANNELSELECT signal to the band to which the count corresponds and (a) sendsto the tuner a BAND signal or equivalent which switches on thecorresponding one of the receiver units 310 (for AM) or 312 (for FM),(b) supplies a FREQUENCY signal to that receiver unit, and (c) selectsthe output of the selected receiver unit to be connected to the input ofthe audio amplifier by supplying an appropriate control signal to amultiplexer 314, for example. The output of the multiplexer 314 isconnected to the input of audio amplifier 106.

Assume that there are not just two, but three, bands covered by thereceiver, for example: the broadcast AM band of approximately 535-1650kHz, the FM band of approximately 88-108 MHz, and a third band coveringweather service channels in the 162.4-162.55 MHz range. Like the FMbroadcast band, the weather service broadcasts are transmitted usingfrequency modulation. There are thus six band limits: the lower andupper limits of each band. Let us call the lower limit of the AM bandAML (denoting the value of the CHANNEL SELECT signal corresponding tothat lower limit; the upper limit of the AM band, AMU; the lower limitof the FM band, FML; the upper limit of the FM band, FMU; the lowerlimit of the weather band, WL; and the upper limit of the weather band,WU. Thus if AML≦CHANNEL SELECT≦AMU, then the processor provides a BANDsignal that selects the AM receiver and activate AM reception.Similarly, if FML≦CHANNEL SELECT≦FMU, the processor provides a BANDsignal that selects the FM receiver and activate FM reception. IfWL≦CHANNEL SELECT≦WU, the BAND signal also selects the FM receiver, toeffect reception of an FM signal, but the value of the FREQUENCY signalwill be appropriate to the weather band instead of the FM band. Clearly,this methodology may be extended to the use of different or additionalbands or services that are accessed using a tuning metaphor ormechanism, such as DAB, satellite and HD radio.

Various receiver circuits may require tuning component or parameterchanges customizations for different broadcast bands, such as differentantennae, different bandpass filters, etc. All of these customizationscan be controlled appropriately from the BAND signal(s) or from acombination of those signals and the FREQUENCY signal, as will readilyoccur to those skilled in the art.

In some embodiments, the tuner may be placed into a “scan” mode whereby,taking advantage of the “bandless” tuning capability, the tuner maycycle through a series of frequencies associated with a first band andthen begin automatically to scan through a series of frequencies of adifferent band. For example, a user may initiate the scan feature whenthe tuner is initially set to a station “low” in the AM band. The tunercycles through the AM band, playing short (e.g., three-second) samplesof each station it encounters. At the top of the AM band, whereas mostradios would begin a second survey of the AM band starting back at thebottom, instead the system begins a scan of the FM band. Scanning maycombine other bands or different bands, or be limited to a single band,at the user's selection. This operation is particularly useful inautomotive environments, to minimize a driver's distraction incurredwhen interacting with radio controls.

In other embodiments, bandless tuning may be adapted to scan broadcastsignals as well as signals input from peripheral devices, allowing thesystem to scan through content in the FM and satellite bands, and from amusic library. All of these variations require no more than minorprogramming changes that will be obvious to anyone skilled inprogramming within the architecture of the system. For example, thebandless tuning feature may be coupled through software to the RDSinformation, also, so that scanning is limited to stations that meetcertain user-defined criteria. For example, with the bandless featureturned on, scanning can be set to sample only stations broadcasting intalk radio format on the AM, FM and satellite bands. On a tabletopsystem or car radio, dedicated or soft (programmable) buttons (which maybe self-labeling on the display) may be provided, to be preset to filterstations according to characteristics programmed into the button. A usermight set up, for example, a country music button, a sports button, andan “all news” button, or a button dedicated to call a specific song orplaylist from an auxiliary source such as an iPod player, using anappropriate codec. Alternatively, some or all of the preset buttons canbe mapped to positions of the tuning knob (encoder) and treated the sameas radio stations, for simplified, pre-configured access, scanning, etc.With reference to FIGS. 14 and 15, there are shown, respectively,examples of display screens whereon radio stations “presets” have beenmapped to eight soft button labels indicating how the soft buttons willoperate when pressed (FIG. 14) and whereon an alphabetical keypadarrangement is mapped as an alternative for use in navigating a songindex, for example (FIG. 15).

The arrangement shown in FIG. 3 and discussed above is exemplary only.Numerous other configurations will readily occur to those skilled in theart. For example, in the example, the counts (channel selection signals)for AM, FM and weather bands are expressly neither contiguous andcontinuous nor discontinuous; they may be either. Also, those bands maybe divided into sub-bands, if desired.

When one of the “bands” is a digital “radio” service, such as asatellite, internet or direct audio broadcast service, then one merelyemploys a processor running browser or other software as the “tuner” foraccessing that service, or a similar “receiver,” and tuning involves theBAND signal being a signal to start the receiver (e.g., start thebrowser or other software and connect to the Internet) and the FREQUENCYsignal supplying a URL or Internet IP address instead of a frequency.Memory can supply to the display any desired identifier for the“station.” Each of these non-radio-frequency broadcasts can be mapped toits own band for tuning purposes.

With this “bandless” tuning methodology, the user need not even beconcerned with whether a particular station is in one band or another.Further, it has been common practice to provide on some tuners a numberof buttons for station “presets;” that is, buttons which can be assignedto preselected stations so that the user has fast access to thosestations by merely pressing the assigned button. However, the number ofbuttons provided is finite, typically in the neighborhood of about sixor eight, most often (but not always) with a dedicated number of buttonpositions for each band. Yet one user may wish to listen (in theextreme) only to AM stations and another user may wish to listen (again,in the extreme) only to FM stations. Thus, each user would be able touse only the six or eight (or other number of) buttons provided for hisfavorite band and the other buttons would be unused. By contrast, asstations herein are mapped to CHANNEL SELECT counts and those counts are“agnostic” as to band until the processor decodes them, a preset buttonin this system preferably stores a station count in a memory 322 in a“record” mode and then causes that count to appear as the COUNT andCHANNEL SELECT signals when the preset button is pressed, overriding theknob (counter) output. In this way, the buttons can be assigned tostations in any band. If twelve buttons re provided, the user can assignthem all to a single band or assign them in any arrangement and numberto different bands. The user might, for example, group the buttonassignments according to the program content type of specific stations,regardless of band. For example, the first two buttons might be assignedto AM and FM stations that have good weather reports. The next threebuttons might be assigned to one AM station and two FM stations thatplay “oldies” music. And so forth. Note that it is unnecessary for theuser to use a switch to select a band; thus, there is no AM/FM switch.

In the control unit 104, there preferably is provided a processor 324which performs various functions, including controlling the informationshown on display unit 132. This processor receives the count output bythe tuning knob circuitry or “preset” buttons, if any are provided, andconverts the count to a frequency assignment (e.g., through use of alookup table or algorithm, not shown) which is then shown on the displayunit. Optionally, other information may also be displayed on the displayunit, such as the time and/or data supplied in a signal from the radiostation, including the station call letters, type of program content,name of a song being played and the artist and album, or otherinformation.

Preferably, the processor in the control unit and the processor in thebase unit are the same type or family of processor, whereby much of thesoftware need be written only once and can be used by both processors.

The control unit may also include circuitry and programming for theprocessor to provide “alarm clock” functionality, including a clock andinterfacing between the clock and the controls of the radio circuits.Such circuitry is conventional and need not be shown in any detail.

Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 5, there are illustrated examples of thesignaling operation which may be established between the control unitand the base unit in, respectively, the undocked and dockedconfigurations.

In the undocked configuration, the control unit 104A (labeled “RemoteUnit Controller”) communicates with the base unit 102 via a wirelesschannel provided by, for example, a ZigBee-compliant (or partiallycompliant) transceiver.

In the base unit, the described functionality may be implemented in manyways, the selection of which is based on practical considerations ofcost, space, power consumption, and the like. One typical arrangement isshown in FIGS. 4 and 5. There, the base unit comprises a base unitcontroller (BUC) module 402 and an analog circuit board module 404.Optionally, the base unit may also have, or be able to receive (e.g., ata socket), a device we term an Auxiliary Source Module 118. TheAuxiliary Source Module may be any of a number of kinds of devices. Forexample, it may be a device that provides audio files in mp3 or .wav orother convenient format (e.g., an iPod device from Apple Computer, orother portable music player); a wireless local area network (LAN) cardproviding connectivity to audio files on a server or to an internetrouter, permitting the downloading of music and other files; or areceiver for a service such as satellite radio, as depicted, forexample, in FIG. 16. The output from the Auxiliary Source Module isrouted to the BUC module instead of to the analog circuit board,preferably, in order to employ the processor in the BUC module to decodeany digital audio signals and convert them to analog form before beingprovided to the analog module. If the signal is already in analog form,of course, if can be passively routed to the analog module by the BUCmodule.

The BUC module includes a wireless transceiver for communicating withthe control unit, a processor 115, and an interface 406 to the analogcircuit board module for control and to pass through analog audiosignals. The analog circuit board typically includes audio amplifiers,power regulation circuits, and pre-processing apparatus. The audiooutput from the analog circuit board is connected or connectable tospeakers 108 located inside or outside the housing for the base unit.The AM and FM tuner circuits are preferably provided on the analogcircuit board, but they could be provided on a separate board.

The audio output from the Auxiliary Source Module, if one is provided,may be routed directed to the analog circuit board or via the BUC to theanalog circuit board.

In the docked configuration, shown in FIG. 5, preferably the ZigBeetransceivers are deactivated when the direct, physical mating isdetected, and a wired connection is established between the control unitand the base unit, as well as a power connection to charge thebattery(ies) in the control unit. Otherwise, the system functions thesame as in the undocked arrangement.

Universal Docking System

It is desirable, though not required, that the Auxiliary Source Modulebe connectable to the base unit through a connector. However, it is alsotrue those different signal sources typically will have different formfactors and use different connectors. For example, even some of thedifferent models of Apple iPod music players provide differentconnectors and/or form factors; and Apple iPod devices use differentconnectors than do Creative Technology's Zen players and XM or Siriussatellite radio receivers. While a system can be made to accept onlyAuxiliary Source Modules (ASMs) with a certain type of connector and acertain form factor, if the user changes ASM or has multiple ASMs withdifferent connectors and/or form factors, the user would find that thebase unit cannot accept all of them or future products of differentdesign. Accordingly, it would be commercially more effective anddesirable to permit a user to employ ASMs with a variety of connectorsand form factors, interchangeably. For this purpose, a base unit maydesirably employ an interface module 116 such as is shown in FIGS. 9-11.The interface module mates to a “universal” connector (not shown)provided as part of the entertainment unit, typically on a circuit boardor cable. (The connector is “universal” in the sense that, if it isprovided with a sufficient number of connection terminals, or pins, thenwith the appropriate interface module, a wide range of ASMs can beconnected to the base unit.) A typical interface module contains twoadapters, a first (electrical) adapter 504 and a second (mechanical)adapter 506. The mechanical adapter may not be required, if theelectrical adapter is not “sunken” below the housing surface, as itserves to provide adjustment to the “form factor” of an ASM and toprotect a docked ASM and the connectors (on the ASM and in the interfacemodule) from mechanical damage.

The universal connector contains connection pins for power and for thekinds of signals that might potentially (foreseeably) be provided to orreceived from an ASM. Some ASMs will require fewer connections thanothers. The electrical adapter 504, in its most basic form, assuming apassive electrical interface suffices, has three components: a firstconnector (not shown) which is mateable with the “universal” connector(within the entertainment system base unit); an interconnectionsub-assembly (e.g., printed circuit board or cable or a combination)512; and a second connector 514 for receiving an ASM of a particulartype. That is, second connector 514 is specific to and compatible withthe ASM. In one embodiment, the two connectors may be mounted ondifferent sides of a printed circuit board and the appropriate pins ofthe first connector may be wired to corresponding pins of the secondconnector through the printed circuit board, the correspondence beingdictated by the functions assigned to the various pins by the ASMmanufacturer and the base unit manufacturer. In some situations, not allpins have counterparts. If needed or desired, buffer circuitry can beprovided on the printed circuit board, powered from the first connector,to buffer, isolate, amplify or level-shift signals passed between thebase unit and the ASM. In another embodiment, which is useful for theconfiguration illustrated in the drawings, it has been found useful forthe interconnection sub-assembly to be formed of a first printed circuitboard wired to the first connector, a second printed circuit board onwhich the second connector is mounted, and a flexible cableinterconnecting the circuit boards. Another approach would be to mountthe second connector on something other than a printed circuit board,such as a plastic part of the adapter housing, and to interconnect thefirst and second connectors with a cable, the cable directly connectedto the first connector. Still another alternative is to provide two (ormore) ASM adapters and switching circuits for selecting one to be activewhile the other(s) is (are) inactive; or, alternatively switching orarranging one to be an audio source while the other ASM provides otherfunctionality such as networking.

Other configurations may be devised according to design considerations.

Optionally, selected pins of the universal connector can be used to codethe identity of the interface module and/or ASM which will be docked. Oncircuit board 512, the leads from those pins can be tied to “high” or“low” logic levels, so as to identify to the processor in theentertainment unit, via the universal connector in the base unit, a typeof ASM. The processor can then retrieve from memory specifications forthe ASM and route appropriate signals to and from the pins of theuniversal connector. Thus, at least some pins of the universal connectorpreferably are connected to multiplexing circuitry to permit re-routingconnections. As new ASM devices are marketed, new specifications can bedownloaded to the entertainment unit via a USB port or other interface(not shown).

The mechanical adapter, if used, is intended to provide an appropriatefit between the base unit housing and the ASM, with differently sizedmechanical adapters being made available for ASMs of differentdimensions or shapes. The base unit is made with an aperture 520 of sizesufficient to receive ASMs of maximum expected size. The mechanicaladapter 506 has a central aperture sized and shaped and positioned toreceive the ASM and to place a connector on the bottom of the ASM intoalignment with the second connector of the electrical adapter. Themechanical adapter may, and preferably does, retain the ASM in aslightly recessed disposition, to provide some physical security for theASM. The mechanical adapter 506 may be provided with a hinged or slidinglid, optionally, to close the aperture 520 and protect connector 514when no ASM is installed.

Database Management and User Interface

Apple's iPod and similar players now are sold with sufficient memorycapacity to store thousands of songs. While this is a boon to musiclovers, it also presents a challenge: finding a desired song among themany that have been stored. Creative Technology of Singapore hasrecognized this problem in its U.S. Pat. No. 6,928,433, which provides ahierarchical interface to facilitate song retrieval. Additionally,facilities are known for creating stored lists of songs, called“playlists.” A command to play a playlist causes the corresponding listof songs to be played seriatim. Use of playlists is particularly helpfulwhen an MP3 player is used in an automobile, to relieve the driver ofthe distraction of having to deal with the user interface to choose asong every few minutes.

On the player, songs typically are stored sequentially as they have beenrecorded. Means are provided on the player to allow a user to scrolllinearly forward and backward through the list of songs, and sometimesfacilities are provided to select and play recorded playlists.

Beyond the availability of these features, little facility is availablefor making it easy for a user to identify and play songs. Currently,iPod devices provide the services of a database engine to externaldevices because very little database functionality has been built in.Songs, artists and albums and the like are represented by data records.An external device can select which records are to be made currentlyactive, such as all songs, all songs by artist X or all songs from albumY. When an external device accesses a record, however, the record isidentified by its position in the list of currently selected records,not by absolute identifier. Thus, a single song will have a differentidentifier based upon how the user navigated to a current list (e.g., byalbum, artist, genre, etc.). This is a limiting approach.

To provide improved functionality, when an iPod music player or similardevice is docked to the universal connector of the new entertainmentconnector, all of the records defining the music content on the deviceare downloaded and a new database is created of that information. Thisdatabase is created by first writing a list of all artists, then foreach artist writing the list of all of that artist's albums, and foreach album, retrieving and writing the list of all songs thereon. Thiscreates a database wherein each song is uniquely identified andindexable by the combination of the artist/album/song names. Forexample, a data tree may be constructed with the list of artists at thetop root level, the albums for each artist at the next level and thesongs for each album at the third level.

Optionally, secondary indices may be written to permit quick access to,for example, the list of all albums (regardless of artist), all songs(regardless of album or artist), and songs by artist (regardless ofalbum).

Once this database exists in memory (e.g., memory 117) within the baseunit, it can be used to implement a variety of access features,including a “jump by spelling” feature, or to easily go from a song thatis playing to the list of other songs in the same album or by the sameartist or by the same name but by different artists. These accessoptions are all straight forward database programming tasks. Then, oncea song is selected to be played by any of these access features, themusic player can be controlled via the user interface to serve up theselected song (e.g., by number) and play it back through the base unit.Of course, it is also possible, technically, copyright law permitting,to download the song file into memory (semiconductor, hard drive oroptical, for example) in the base unit and to play it from there, usingan appropriate codec to turn the stored digital representation into ananalog signal that can be supplied to transducers such as loudspeakers.

As shown, the interface module may also include a cover to protect theconnector 514 when no ASM is docked.

Alarm Clock

With reference to FIGS. 1 and 12 (discussed below) and appropriatesoftware control to effect the functionality to be discussed, a“fail-safe” radio/player-alarm function is provided which will confirmalarm settings, minimize the risk of a user inadvertently overwritingdesired alarm settings and provide a wake-up service in four situationswhere conventional clock radios will not play a radio or music source toprovide a wake-up service. The first situation is that the volumecontrol has been turned down or the volume has been muted by the user,instead of turning the radio off. When the time arrives for the alarmclock to turn on the radio, it does so but the radio emits no or verylow sound output. The second situation is when if headphones are leftplugged in. Normally, when headphones are plugged in, the speakers aredisconnected. Thus, if one goes to sleep with headphones plugged in, theclock radio fails to sound an alarm that will wake the user. Third, if aplug is present on an auxiliary output jack, the situation is basicallythe same as when headphones are plugged in. Fourth, if the AM/PM settingwas incorrect, when the time arrives for the expected alarm (e.g., 6:00a.m.), nothing happens because the clock radio actually was set to 6:00p.m.

The enhanced functionality which overcomes these shortcomings isprovided by employing a processor in the base unit 102, which may beprocessor 115 or another processor or microcontroller, to control thevolume of the audio channels separately for the alarm function and forthe non-alarm “regular play” function. This permits the radio's alarmvolume to be controlled independently of normal listening volume andalso permits the audio output to be supplied through the system'sloudspeakers for alarm purposes even when the speakers are deactivatedfor other purposes. Additionally, separate volume controls are providedto control the volume emitted by the speakers in alarm mode as comparedwith normal listening mode. The alarm volume defaults to a pre-set levelthat should be appropriate for normal alarm usage and steps are taken torequire extra efforts by the user to change the alarm volume so thatinadvertent changes are made unlikely. For example, the alarm modevolume setting should not be an external knob or slider or similarmechanical control that is too easily turned down to a low setting. Itmay, for example, be an internal knob or a “soft” setting establishedon-screen by the user, stored and left to be forgotten. Preferably, if amanual control is employed, the alarm volume control is in a hidden orinterior location so that, once set, a user normally will not change thevolume setting and thereby defeat the intended “fail-safe”functionality.

When the base unit is connected via a network to a computer, it isstraightforward to allow alarm settings to be programmed from thecomputer, and to store preferences in user profiles in either thecomputer or base unit or both. Storing default user profiles in the baseunit is also one way to facilitate selection of the language of textdisplayed on the bitmapped graphics of the display device.

Turning to FIG. 12, there is shown a simplified block diagram of audiosignal routing and control which provides the basis for implementing,among other things, some of the “fail-safe” alarm features discussedabove. As illustrated, four different inputs are presented, which maypossibly generate audio outputs. First is an auxiliary input jack 602.Second is an auxiliary source module (ASM) 118. Third is the processor115, which can generate an alarm buzz by providing an appropriatepulse-width modulated (PWM) signal on line 604. Fourth is the tuner 114.The signals from each of these inputs are supplied to block 606 which isa multiplexer and volume control stage. In exemplary form, themultiplexer (i.e., input selector) and volume control stage 606 may beimplemented using a commercially available integrated circuit such asthe TDA7462 dual audio processor with compander from STMicroelectronics,Philips's TEF6892H integrated signal processor or other suitablecircuit. Mux (multiplexer) and volume control stage 606 is controlled bysignals supplied by processor 115 on line(s) 608. The processordetermines which of the inputs to the Mux 606 will supply an outputsignal on line 610 and it also sets the volume (amplitude) of the outputsignal on line 610. The signal on line 610 may be a monaural or stereosignal, depending on the input, and illustrating output 610 as a singleline is not intended to suggest only a monaural signal. Line 610supplies input to the main speaker amplifier 106, a headphone amplifier612 to headphone jack 614, and “line out” amplifier 616 to line out jack618. The main speaker amplifier 106 and the headphone amplifier are eachcontrolled by an on/off signal supplied, respectively, on lines 622 and624 from processor 115. Finally, circuitry 626 and 628 is provided tomonitor the condition of each of headphone and line out jacks 614 and618, respectively. The output of each of circuits 626 and 628 isprovided to the processor 115. Depending upon the state of the outputsignals from circuits 626 and 628, the processor “knows” whether aheadphone is plugged into the headphone jack and whether an externalamplifier or other device is plugged into the line out jack, forsupplying an audio signal to an external speaker or other lode [load].When a headphone is plugged into headphone jack 614, the processordetects that condition and turns off the main speaker amplifier forgenerating an appropriate “off” signal on line 622. The processor mayalso turn off the headphone amplifier if there is no headphone pluggedinto the headphone jack, or under other appropriate conditions. Suitableprogram code executing on the processor implements the alarm clockfunctions. For each of the input “channels” to Mux volume control 606, adistinct volume control setting (or settings) is stored. The volumecontrol settings may be stored in any convenient location, including indata storage (memory) 117 which is accessible by processor 115. Throughthe control unit, the user can select one of the inputs and set itsvolume which is then saved. So the volume for the tuner when it isproviding a normal alarm output, is saved separately from the volumesetting for the tuner when it is being used as a source of a wake upprogram. The programming of processor 115 assures that when an alarm“goes off,” the control signal on line 622 turns on the main speakeramplifier irrespective of the sense conditions of the headphone jack 614and line out jack 618, and that the alarm volume is controlled by thepre-saved alarm volume setting, irrespective of the volume settings forany of the inputs in “normal” play mode.

Other fail-safe alarm functions are provided principally by theprogramming of processor 115. For example, alarm clock users, with somefrequency, have been known to mistakenly set an alarm that is in errorby twelve hours, because they make a mistake about AM/PM selection,which is often shown simply by a lighted dot. To avoid this problem,processor 115 compares the current time with the set alarm time if thealarm is being set more than 12 hours ahead of the time, an errormessage is generated to the user, asking whether the indicated alarmtime is correct.

Another example of a fail-safe alarm system feature relates to the“snooze” feature found on those clock radios. In the invented system, auser-defined limit is programmed into the processor, and the snoozefeature is disabled when the limit is reached, thus providing additionalcontrol over such features as the number of times a snooze feature maybe activated (to temporarily disable the alarm) or the number ofpermitted minutes in a snooze cycle. Further, the system may include afeature that the last time the alarm comes on after the snooze cycle hascompleted, the only way to turn off the alarm is to press a differentbutton on the base unit itself.

It is envisioned that users will desire to separate the control unitfrom the base unit. For example, users may desire to place one or twocontrol units on bedside tables (e.g., “his” and “her” control units),while placing the base unit on a bedroom dresser that cannot be reachedfrom the bed. As previously stated, in some embodiments the number of“snooze” actions that can be taken may be limited, either by fixeddesign or in response to user input. In such embodiments, when the lastalarm goes off and turns on the base unit, the remote units arepreferably rendered incapable of turning off the alarm. Rather, ahardware button 702 is provided (e.g., at the back of the docking areafor the remote—see FIG. 13), interfaced to the processor 155 by, forexample, an interrupt operation, so a user must make an extra effort,perhaps getting out of bed and walking across the room to press thisbutton to turn off the alarm. In some embodiments, the last alarm aftermultiple snooze cycles may be limited to a loud and irritating buzzsupplied by the PWM signal on line 604, instead of a potentiallysoothing musical output. In some embodiments, the volume may besuccessively increased for each snooze cycle or the source for contentof the sound output can be changed from one alarm to the next, toencourage the user to wake up.

A persistent alarm setting, as used herein, is one which, having beenset, generates an alarm on subsequent days at the set timeautomatically, and does not require that the user turn the alarm on foreach successive day. Thus, if a user intends to set an alarm for thesame time for each weekday, the user need only set the alarm once andthe user does not run the risk of oversleeping because he did not turnon the alarm before going to sleep a given evening.

Thus, many common causes of oversleeping may be avoided with proper useof the architecture and programming thus provided.

Using an internal calendar that is initialized at setup, the internalclock accounts for changes between Daylight Savings and Standard time.That, of course, is a common function on personal computers and otherdigital appliances. In some embodiments, provision may be made to setalarm times individually for different days of the week. The number ofdifferent days for which alarms can be set is simply a matter ofmanufacturing choice according to how much memory the designer wishes todevote to alarms. In some embodiments, one or more persistent alarms,for all or only selected days of the week, can be set and in someembodiments a single one-time alarm setting is provided. Any combinationof persistent and one-time alarms may be provided, of course.

Aesthetics

Preferably, the base unit can be customized to the user's aesthetictaste. For example, the base unit preferably comprises a housing thatholds circuit boards, speakers, jacks and other hardware, and detachablepanels may be selected and attached (e.g., snapped or screwed into placeor otherwise affixed) for the top, bottom, sides and back, and possiblythe front, constructed from any suitable material, such as wood, metal,plastic or the like. These panels may be provided in various colors,shades and tones, painted or unpainted, with plush surfaces or texturedsurfaces or other embellishments. Wood panels of various types,staining, and design may be made available. If desired, the top panelcan be configured as a detachable tray. Speaker grills can have variousembodiments, and (for example) may have a plurality of small aperturesor may be cloth covered.

It should be understood that the described user interface can present toa user a standardized interface for use in tabletop systems, automotivesystems and even portable systems. The use of bandless tuning; abit-mapped graphics display and “soft”, programmable buttons; along withthe described database features for accessing content from an ASM, allcan be employed in those systems, together or in various groupings. Themore features used in common, the more standard or unified the userinterface becomes and the lower the cost of implementation. Adoption ofa standard interface for automobile, home and/or office use, moreover,means the automobile driver is more likely to be able to operate theinterface with minimal distraction, due to acquired familiarity andsimplicity of interaction.

Having thus described several aspects of at least one embodiment of thisinvention, it is to be appreciated various alterations, modifications,and improvements will readily occur to those skilled in the art. Suchalterations, modifications, and improvements are intended to be part ofthis disclosure, and are intended to be within the spirit and scope ofthe invention. For example, the base unit need not include a tuner atall; or it may only include a single band tuner. The base unit need notinclude an audio amplifier or loudspeakers; they could be in otherhousings. The base unit need not have the ability to receive portablemusic devices, network cards or the like. A system could be builtwherein the control unit cannot be docked with the base unit and canonly be a separate remote control. Or the control unit, when docked,might not have a direct electrical connection to the base unit; it mightcontinue to use an RF link or it might use an infrared link or someother channel. The various features discussed above may be practicedsingly or in any combination. Other variations will occur to the skilledartisan. Accordingly, the foregoing description and drawings are by wayof example only.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of using an entertainment system toaccess media content accessible from a media source that is separatefrom and operatively connected to the entertainment system, the methodcomprising: a. the entertainment system receiving, from the mediasource, media metadata associated with one or more media content itemsfrom among a plurality of media content items accessible from the mediasource; b. storing the received media metadata in a database accessibleto the entertainment system; and c. using at least a portion of thereceived media metadata stored in the database to select media contentaccessible from the media source and to request the media source to sendthe selected media content from the media source to the entertainmentsystem, wherein the act (a) of receiving the media metadata furtherincludes: i. the entertainment system causing the media source to sendfrom the media source to said entertainment system a list of song titlesassociated with media files or with media streams accessible by saidmedia source, and further said entertainment system; ii. writing thelist of song titles to the database; iii. interrelating in the databasethe song titles with at least a name of an album or albums containingcorresponding songs, whereby a database is created in which each of thesongs is uniquely identified by at least album and song title mediametadata; iv. the entertainment system causing the media source to sendfrom the media source to said entertainment system a list of artists forwhom media metadata can be accessed by the media source; v. theentertainment system writing the list of artists to the database; vi.for each artist in the list, the entertainment system causing the mediasource to send to said entertainment system a list of all of thatartist's albums; vii. writing the list of albums to the database so asto interrelate artists with their albums; and viii. for each album soidentified, interrelating songs with their respective albums; wherebythe database is created in which each song is uniquely identified andaccessible by a combination of artist, album, and song title mediametadata.
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein the act (a) of receiving themedia metadata further includes the entertainment system causing themedia source to send to the entertainment system media metadata from atleast one record containing media metadata accessible by the mediasource.
 3. The method of claim 2 wherein the act (a) of receiving themedia metadata further includes the entertainment system causing themedia source to send to the entertainment system media metadata fromplural records containing media metadata accessible by the media source,wherein the received media metadata includes plural kinds of mediametadata.
 4. The method of claim 3 wherein the act (b) of storing thereceived media metadata further includes: i. writing the plural kinds ofmedia metadata to database entries in the database, and ii.interrelating the resulting database entries so that plural kinds ofmedia metadata are interrelated in the database.
 5. The method of claim3 or of claim 4 wherein the plural kinds of media metadata include twoor more of song title, album, artist, playlist, stream name, and alocation of a media file or of a media stream source.
 6. The method ofclaim 2 wherein the entertainment system includes a portable handhelddevice for displaying media metadata and receiving user selections basedon the displayed media metadata.
 7. The method of claim 6 wherein atleast a portion of the media metadata database or a copy thereof isstored in the entertainment system.
 8. The method of claim 6 wherein atleast a portion of the database or a copy thereof is stored in thehandheld device.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the databasecomprises a data structure stored in memory with the list of artists ata root level, the albums for each artist at the next level and the songtitles for each album at a third level.
 10. The method of claim 9further comprising displaying on a display screen of the entertainmentsystem a representation of at least a portion of said data structure, toallow a user to select media content to be played by the entertainmentsystem.
 11. The method of claim 10 further comprising, in response touser selection of media content, the entertainment system constructingan addressing path to the selected media content automatically from atraversal of the data structure by the user, and retrieving the selectedmedia content from the media source using the constructed addressingpath.
 12. The method of claim 1 or claim 2 in which accessing theselected media content occurs using a network.
 13. The method of claim 1or claim 2 wherein the entertainment system operatively controls themedia source using a network.
 14. An entertainment system for accessingmedia content accessible by a media source, the media source storing oneor more records that contain media metadata associated with the mediacontent accessible by the media source, comprising: a. memory storing atleast one of program instructions and digital information includingmedia metadata; b. at least one communications interface configured forcommunicating with a media source that has at least one correspondingcommunications interface configured for communicating with theentertainment system; c. a user interface at least in part used fordisplaying selected media metadata and receiving user selections; and d.an instruction processor for executing program instructions, wherein theinstruction processor executes instructions that cause at least some ofthe media metadata to be downloaded from the media source to the memoryusing the entertainment system communications interface, and wherein theinstruction processor executes instructions that cause the downloadedmedia metadata to be stored in a database accessible to theentertainment system, and further wherein the instruction processorexecutes instructions causing the entertainment system to access themedia content accessible by the media source using at least a portion ofthe downloaded media metadata stored in the database, wherein theinstruction processor further executes instructions stored in memory toeffectuate: i. the entertainment system causing the media source to sendfrom the media source to the entertainment system a list of artists forwhom media metadata are stored on the media source; ii. theentertainment system writing the list of artists to the database; iii.for each artist in the list, the entertainment system causing the mediasource to send to the entertainment system a list of all of thatartist's albums; iv. writing the list of albums to the database so as tointerrelate, in the database, the artists to their albums; and v. foreach album so identified, interrelating in the database songs with theiralbums, whereby the database is created in which each song is uniquelyidentified and accessible by a combination of artist, album, and songtitle media metadata.
 15. The entertainment system of claim 14 whereinthe database comprises a data structure in memory with the list ofartists at a root level, the albums for each artist at the next leveland the song titles for each album at a third level.
 16. Theentertainment system of claim 15 wherein the instruction processorexecutes instructions stored in memory to effectuate display on anentertainment system display screen a representation of at least aportion of the data structure, to allow a user to select media contentto be played on the entertainment system.
 17. The entertainment systemof claim 16 further comprising, in response to user selection of mediacontent, the instruction processor executing instructions stored inmemory such that an addressing path to the selected media content isconstructed automatically from a traversal of the data structure by auser, and the selected media content is accessed using the constructedaddressing path.